UPDATE from Fox News: South Dakota Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson was listed in critical condition after undergoing successful brain surgery early Thursday. The congenital brain condition, arteriovenous malformation, caused bleeding in Johnson’s brain, said U.S. Capitol attending physician Adm. John Eisold. Johnson’s condition, also known as AVM, causes arteries and veins to grow abnormally large and become tangled. The condition, present at birth, causes tangled blood vessels.Â
ALLAHPUNDIT has tons more including: Kurtz thinks it’s time for states to get rid of the rule whereby governors appoint a replacement if a Senator can’t serve out his term. I agree. It’s a vestige of the days when Senators were elected by the state legislature. Why continue to let local government send replacements to Washington when the people they’re replacing were directly elected?
Straight from Michelle Malkin: It’s unconfirmed, but word is that U.S. Senator Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) has suffered a stroke. First and foremost, keep him and his family in your thoughts and prayers. There’s already a rush to calculate the political consequences in the Senate. Left-wing blog Raw Story has details:Â Â Â
 MSNBC is currently reporting that Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) has suffered a stroke.There is no word, currently, on the Senator’s condition.
A call from RAW STORY to Johnson’s office has not yet been returned.
If Johnson were to pass away, or be forced to retire, the US Constitution delegates the task of appointing a replacement to South Dakota lawmakers, who in turn, often turn that task over to the Governor. The Governor of that state, Mike Rounds, is a Republican, and both houses of the state legislature are dominated by Republicans.
In the case of South Dakota, the decision would fall to Rounds, whose appointment would serve as senator until 2008 at which point the seat would be up for election.
 MSNBC is currently reporting that Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) has suffered a stroke.There is no word, currently, on the Senator’s condition.Sen. Johnson is reportedly under observation at George Washington University Hospital in D.C.
 MSNBC is currently reporting that Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) has suffered a stroke.There is no word, currently, on the Senator’s condition.Sen. Johnson is reportedly under observation at George Washington University Hospital in D.C.The Democratic Underground thread is here.
 MSNBC is currently reporting that Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) has suffered a stroke.There is no word, currently, on the Senator’s condition.Sen. Johnson is reportedly under observation at George Washington University Hospital in D.C.The Democratic Underground thread is .Ian linked to this MSNBC coverage of the story
Katie Couric on the nightly news has just covered it.
They report only they’re “monitoring him for a possible stroke. At this point they’re not sure”.
They just ruled out stroke and heart won’t give any further details..It is alarming in that he has a history of cancer:sad:
The fellow’s only fifty-nine.
So much hangs in the balance politically along with his personal malaise.
Odd turn of events don’t you think?
He had bettr take it easy and qut all that ranting or he will take leave of this world:eek:
Morning ABC Radio news has Johnson in critical condition, and the Senate Democrat majority along with him. Who says ABC isn’t biased and doesn’t have an agend?
PCD did you see CNN’s coverage of it yesterday? They were in panic mode freaking about how this event will cost the dem’s their majority in the senate. Didn’t seem to care too much about the senator other than what he meant for their great democrat revolution, and people think fox is the voice of the republican party? I hope the best for the guy, but the best thing for our government is if the house and senate are split between the parties. Neither party can be trusted with control of the house senate and presidency, except maybe the libertarians. Hey let’s give that a try.
6, yeah, right, pot for everyone!
The Democrites will do everything they possibly can to prevent losing their majority. Even if Sen. Johnson is unable to realistically perform his duties, the Democrites will do everything they can to keep him in.
I can just imagine a “Weekend at Bernie’s” scenario in the Senate.
8, Robert, what they will do, as they have done before, is demand that a Democrat be appointed to replace Johnson. Now, I don’t remember the specific case, but when it is a Democrat Governor replacing a GOP office holder, the Demo puts in a Demo and damn the voters.
8.
The Democrites [sic] will do everything they possibly can to prevent losing their majority.
As would the Republicans Robert but this is about the man’s health.
The noontime local news said he’d undergone brain surgery and was in critical condition.
I updated the post with some new links and info…this man is by no means out of the woods..keep his family in your thoughts..
The lunacy is already starting. I read on a left leaning site someone suggesting that he was poisoned and hoped that the doctors performed due diligence. Though the poster didn’t say that, he didn’t appear smart enough to even knows what that means. Expect to see CNN reporting he was poisoned as a fact shortly with or without supporting evidence.
#4 I have been waiting for the Moonbats to start the conspiracy theories. Could this have been a Rove/Halliburton/Neocon plot?
#10 Of course we hope for the best for Sen. Johnson but this topic is also about the political aspects.
#9 PCD you are right. “Fairness” (to the MSM and Democrites) means that the SD Governor would appoint a Democrite. But if Johnson was a Republican and the SD Gov was a Democrite, is there any chance that same standard would be applied? Of course not!
I have a question: Will any Democrats decry keeping Johnson on life support as they did for keeping Terry Schiavo on life support?
Will any Democrats decry keeping Johnson on life support as they did for keeping Terry Schiavo on life support?
If Johnson is on life support for years with a head full of spinal fluid instead of grey matter, and all of the doctors who actually examine him decide that he has absolutely no brain function, then, yes, I assume that the Democrats will support taking him off of life support.
solarc,
I see you are saying for years. I’ll chalk you up as one favoring the “Weekend at Bernie’s” scenario to keep the Dems in the majority in the Senate.
#14
I have a question: Will any Democrats decry keeping Johnson on life support as they did for keeping Terry Schiavo on life support?
Interesting parallel but not really comparable PCD.
The Schiavo case was pretty much a religous agenda visited on an anonymous family. With regard to Johnson’s situation, I suspect (though I don’t know) that there’s a precident for the “functionality” of the individual which would supercede anything as dire as pulling a plug.
He can keep his seat even if he is in a coma, look at Byrd and Thurman:razz:…as for this:The Schiavo case was pretty much a religous agenda visited on an anonymous family. I disagree..the family brought it to the public and the public latched on.
18.
Yes Peejz I know.
..the family brought it to the public and the public latched on.
Yes Peejz I know.
But the right to lifers took it and ran with it. I found the whole thing immensely political and not a little bit nauseating. More indication that some things are left better to privacy rather than public consumption.
with respect to you first point.. that’s good news!
The Basic reaction to my qustion from Libs is if the Democrats can keep the seat, the family can pull the plug any time, but if the Dems would lose the seat, they don’t care if Johnson dies, they’d technicaly keep him alive to keep the seat.
21.
PCD in response to the above, I’m sadly able to rather confidently observe “in politcs all bets are off”. I mean this bipartisanly.
.. hence much of the world’s problems today. This, for me, is where we falter in the realm of real morality.
22.
Well said.
Very well said.